Outpatient modified rapid detoxification for addiction to alcohol and drugs

ABSTRACT

A medicament regimen for outpatient modified rapid detoxification for addiction to alcohol and drugs is disclosed. Patients are seen by trained medical professionals who are recovering addicts and alcoholics. The medicament protocol addresses all of the withdrawal symptoms while allowing the patient to safely sleep through the detoxification.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application is a divisional application of U.S. patent applicationSer. No. 15/211,375, filed Jul. 15, 2016, and claims the benefit ofpriority of U.S. provisional application No. 62/192,619, filed Jul. 15,2015, the contents of which are herein incorporated by reference.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to medication assisted detoxificationprograms and, more particularly, to the detoxification of patientssuffering from addiction to alcohol or drugs. Conventional inpatientdetoxification programs require 2-5 day patient stays at an inpatientmedical or treatment facility, resulting in a much greater expense. Manyof these programs do not include follow-up programs. That is, once thepatient is released from the treatment facility.

As can be seen, there is a need for an outpatient program that canassist patients with addictions to alcohol or drugs.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In one aspect of the present invention, a patient detoxificationmedicament for recovery from a drug addiction on an outpatient basis,includes: a dosage of phenobarbital; a dosage of clonidine; a dosage ofbaclofen; a dosage of ropinirole; and a dosage of dicyclomine.

The dosage of phenobarbital is about 32.4 mg. The dosage of clonidine isabout 0.1 mg. The dosage of baclofen is about 10 mg. The dosage ofropinirole is about 1 mg. The dosage of dicyclomine is about 20 mg.

In other aspects of the invention, the detoxification medicament mayalso include a dosage of an antidiarrheal or an antinausea medicamentselected from the group consisting of promethazine, lomotil, andtrazadone. The dosage of promethazine at about 25 mg. The dosage oflomotil at about 2.5 mg. The trazadone at about 100 mg.

In yet other aspects of the invention, the detoxification medicament mayalso include a dosage of an anti-craving medicament selected from thegroup consisting of naltrexone, campral, disulfram, vivitrol. The dosageof naltrexone is about 50 mg. The dosage of campral is about 333 mg.

These and other features, aspects and advantages of the presentinvention will become better understood with reference to the followingdrawings, description and claims.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a flowchart for a preferred protocol for the detoxification ofpatients recovering from drug or alcohol addiction in an outpatientsetting.

FIG. 2 is a continuation of the flowchart of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a continuation of the flowchart of FIGS. 1 and 2.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The following detailed description is of the best currently contemplatedmodes of carrying out exemplary embodiments of the invention. Thedescription is not to be taken in a limiting sense, but is made merelyfor the purpose of illustrating the general principles of the invention,since the scope of the invention is best defined by the appended claims.

Broadly, an embodiment of the present invention provides a system foroutpatient detoxification of patients suffering from addiction toalcohol and drugs. By following the program in an outpatient setting,substantial monetary savings can be realized over programs involvinginpatient treatment.

Through the use of a specialized combination of 8 medications, describedherein, the patient is able to safely detoxify from alcohol and drugaddiction on an outpatient basis at the direction of a medical doctor.The initial detoxification is followed up by 3 months of weekly visitsto the doctor for prescriptions for anticravings medications, such asNaltrexone (50 mg), Campral (333 mg). Concurrently, during this 3 monthperiod, the patient is provided weekly counseling sessions.

The claimed invention differs from what currently exists. Following theregimen disclosed herein, the patient is able to undergo detoxificationtreatment in the comfort of their own home. The patient is providedtelephonic access to the doctor and trained medical staff 24 hours aday, 7 days per week, and with greatly reduced cost.

Some hospital staffs are often poorly trained in detoxification methodsand are not aware of the psychological needs of addicted patients. Quiteoften access to inpatient detoxification is curtailed by insurance orother cost considerations. An aspect of our invention is that, therecovering patients are seen by trained professionals, who are oftenthemselves recovering drug addicts and alcoholics. The medicationprotocol addresses all of the withdrawal symptoms, while allowing thepatient to safely sleep through the detoxification process.

The following protocol is presented for the outpatient detoxificationprogram according to our invention:

1. Patient meets with a doctor to determine the patient is medicallyeligible for participation in the outpatient program. Eligibilityrequirements include: a desire to quit using alcohol and/or drugs ofabuse, blood work within normal ranges, no allergies to any of themedications used for detoxification or cravings.

2. Doctor prescribes the following detoxification medications including:

A) Phenobarbital (32.4 mg);

B) clonidine (0.1 mg);

C) baclofen (10 mg);

D) ropinirole (1 mg);

E) dicyclomine (20 mg);

F) promethazine (25 mg);

G) lomotil (2.5 mg); and

H) trazodone (100 mg).

3. The Patient is given specific instructions for order and amount ofmedications to be taken, according to the following:

a. The patient should wait until they feel significant withdrawalsymptoms, i.e. anxiety, sweating and chilling, restless legs, tremors,shakes and involuntary muscle contractions.

b. Once the withdrawal symptoms become uncomfortable the patient takesone pill from each of the prescribed medications A., B., C., D., and E.This combination of medications should allow the patient to sleepcomfortably.

c. If the patient is unable to sleep within 4 hours of the previousdosage administration, the patient is to take another combination of thefive (5) drugs A., B., C., D., and E.

d. Once the patient is asleep, they should be allowed to sleep as longas they can.

e. When the patient awakes, they should use the bathroom, if necessary,and should drink as much fluids as possible. Should the patient gethungry, they should eat light food, such as chicken soup, crackers, andthe like.

f. The patient should then take another dose of the detoxificationmedications A., B., C., D., and E. If necessary, the patient should takemedications F., G., and H, as needed and prescribed.

g. Repeat this process for a twenty-four (24) hour period, taking amaximum of five (5) doses of the combination A., B., C., D., and Ewithin a twenty-four hour period.

h. The patient should call the physician's office (24 hour availabilityof staff) once per day for questions and further directions.

Repeat steps 3. a. through 3. h., calling the office daily until staffevaluation determines that the detoxification is complete.

4. When detoxification is complete as verified by a subsequent urinedrug screen testing for the drug/alcohol that the patient is beingtreated for to make sure that the patient is testing negative. Then aprescription is given by the doctor for anti-craving medications, suchas: Naltrexone (50 mg) and Campral (333 mg).

5. After the patient has been on the anti-craving medication(s) for atleast one (1) week, they are given a follow-up appointment, at whichtime they will be tested for Attention Deficit Disorder, Bi-PolarDisorder, anxiety and depression. If the patient demonstrates a need formedication for any of those disorders, then the physician will make arecommendation and the patient can decide if they desire to address thedisorder condition with medication, or counseling, or a combinationthereof.

6. The patient then begins weekly follow-up appointments with thephysician and/or staff for a minimum of three (3) months during whichtime they continue with the anti-craving medication(s) and any othermedication that the physician recommends. Additionally, the patientattends at least one (1) support group (in-house or outside) meeting perweek, in addition to individual therapy sessions with a counselor orphysician as needed.

7. For participation in the program, the patient agrees to submit torandom urine drug screens, to monitor compliance throughout the durationof the program. If the patient tests positive for alcohol and/or druguse, their case is reviewed by staff to determine if they can continueon the program or need to be referred to an inpatient treatment program.

It is important that the procedure be followed in numerical order forthe patient to have the most comfortable detoxification, and for thebest possible outcome. Taking any shortcut can result in a failedattempt to detoxify. For a doctor and staff to use this procedure theywould need to know the symptoms of withdrawal to understand that thespecific order of medications used in the withdrawal process isextremely important for a successful detoxification.

Typical symptoms of withdrawal includes anxiety, sweating, chillingtremors, involuntary muscle contractions, restless legs, abdominal painand cramping, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, and insomnia. Medications usedfor these symptoms in order of use for the particular symptom; A)Phenobarbital (32.4 mg), B) Clonidine (0.1 mg), C) Baclofen (10 mg), D)Ropinirole (1 mg), #) Docyclomine (20 mg), F) Promethazine (25 mg), G)Lomotil (2.5 mg), H) Trazodone (100 mg). The order of use of themedications A, B, C, D, E, to begin the detoxification should not bevaried. Medications F, G, and H, are to be used for symptoms such as 15diarrhea, nausea, and vomiting.

If the patient is determined to be appropriate medically for outpatientdetoxification then the medication regimen according to the presentinvention, if followed as directed, will be successful in achieving asafe, comfortable, affordable outcome for the patient.

A doctor would need to know the specific drugs, the strengths of thedrugs, and the order that they are used in to be successful. Thecomponents cannot be interchanged in any way or the procedure will notwork. This is a medical procedure that should only be used in theforegoing manner to solve the problem of outpatient detoxification.

It should be understood, of course, that the foregoing relates toexemplary embodiments of the invention and that modifications may bemade without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as setforth in the following claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A detoxification medicament comprising: a dosageof phenobarbital; a dosage of clonidine; a dosage of baclofen; a dosageof ropinirole; and a dosage of dicyclomine.
 2. The detoxificationmedicament of claim 1, wherein the dosage of phenobarbital is about 32.4mg.
 3. The detoxification medicament of claim 1, wherein the dosage ofclonidine is about 0.1 mg.
 4. The detoxification medicament of claim 1,wherein the dosage of baclofen is about 10 mg.
 5. The detoxificationmedicament of claim 1, wherein the dosage of ropinirole is about 1 mg.6. The detoxification medicament of claim 1, wherein the dosage ofdicyclomine is about 20 mg.
 7. The detoxification medicament of claim 1,wherein: the dosage of phenobarbital is about 32.4 mg; the dosage ofclonidine is about 0.1 mg; the dosage of baclofen about 10 mg; thedosage of ropinirole about 1 mg; and the dosage of dicyclomine is about20 mg.
 8. The detoxification medicament of claim 1, further comprising:a dosage of an antidiarrheal or an antinausea medicament selected fromthe group consisting of promethazine, lomotil, and trazadone.
 9. Thedetoxification medicament of claim 8, wherein the dosage of theantidiarrheal or the antinausea medicament comprises: promethazine atabout 25 mg.
 10. The detoxification medicament of claim 8, wherein thedosage of the antidiarrheal or the antinausea medicament comprises:lomotil at about 2.5 mg.
 11. The detoxification medicament of claim 8,wherein the dosage of the antidiarrheal or the antinausea medicamentcomprises: trazadone at about 100 mg.
 12. The detoxification medicamentof claim 8, further comprising: a dosage of an anti-craving medicamentselected from the group consisting of naltrexone, campral, disulfram,vivitrol.
 13. The detoxification medicament of claim 12, wherein thedosage of naltrexone is about 50 mg.
 14. The detoxification medicamentof claim 12, wherein the dosage of campral is about 333 mg.